The Sickness
by ladyanaconda
Summary: Ever since Purple got the mysterious sickness, Red has done his best to find a cure. But does it even exist? Short fic.


**I've had this idea for a good while, and since Halloween was coming, I decided to give it a shot. I guess you're wondering what is this sickness? You'll have to keep reading to find out!**

* * *

**The Sickness**

* * *

Nobody has seen Tallest Purple in a while. Ever since he got sick and Tallest Red took him to the medics, he never returned. Shortly after, he made an announcement.

"_Almighty Tallest Purple has fallen ill with a very contagious disease and shall be indisposed until further notice. For his safety, he has been put in quarantine with restricted visits until the medics can find a cure._"

That's all he said on the matter. He gave no details about the disease or how Tallest Purple acquired it, and the medics working on the cure were forbidden to reveal any information under threat of deactivation.

Tallest Red would disappear every few days for hours to check on the progress. He was the only one, apart from the medics, who could enter the quarantine chamber where Tallest Purple currently lived alongside the doctors working on the cure. Sometimes, he looked pale and exhausted after the visiting hours, but he refused to explain as to his state. Eventually, the smallers stopped asking out of fear of being thrown out of the airlock.

Not long after, captive aliens and war prisoners started going missing. It's not that they cared, of course. Sometimes they were taken from their cells and used in experiments to test out new weapons or biochemical weapons to use against enemy planets. The odd thing was that the guards never write these borrowings in the files, and these captives never returned to their cells.

"What do you think the scientists are doing with them?" one of the guards inquired curiously as they stared at the newest cell whose occupant went missing. His companion shrugged.

"I don't know, and I don't care. More space for new prisoners."

"Good point."

* * *

The _Massive_ is so big that some areas are unoccupied or unknown to the crew except for a few who managed to find it. The only one who knows every single dark corner of the ship is the Tallest. The Control Brains directly pass the flagship's blueprints and map into their _PAK_s so they could access the Massive's 'aces under the sleeve.' Red had picked a hidden chamber close to his bedroom, and whose only two accesses were from the Tallest lounge and the Med Bay. These security measures would make it harder for onlookers to try to peek into the quarantine room; he didn't want anyone to see his co-Tallest in this state.

After returning from Tallest duty, Red opened a perfectly hidden panel into the wall, typed in a code, and pricked his finger on a small needle to draw a drop of blood. The security system was programmed only to open the door with his biosignature. Anyone else would be vaporized in the spot. He floated down the corridor, eventually reaching another door, which he opened in the same manner as the previous one.

"My Tallest, sir!" one of the scientists greeted with a salute, prompting the rest to do the same. Red looked around the secret laboratory coldly.

"Any progress?" Red passed by a table with foreign substances. Most notably, the Earthen fruit that is known as garlic alongside some red flowers and sticks.

"N-Not yet, sir. All versions of the serum are yet to make any effect."

"Any development of Tallest Purple's behavior?"

"He still shows high levels of aggression. Tallest Purple can't go without component B for too long. He weakens and displays symptoms of Abstinence Syndrome when he doesn't feed, not to mention that he nearly broke through the glass the last time. Don't worry; we fixed it." The scientist trembled when her Tallest loomed over her with a disapproving frown.

"In other words, we're still stuck."

"I-I'm afraid so, my Tallest."

"What is Tallest Purple doing right now?"

"He was fed half an hour ago, so he should be calm right now."

"Good. I'm going in."

"S-Sir, are you sure?" another scientist asked nervously. "He almost killed one of the drones sent to clean his chamber-"

"I'm not a drone, now move!" Red pushed the scientist aside and headed for the sealed doors on the opposite end of the laboratory. They slid open upon recognizing his bio-signature, allowing him unto a smaller room with another set of double doors. These ones were far thicker and made with stronger metal. Red had to nod at one of the scientists on the panel, signaling them to let him in.

The spacious room was pitch black without any illumination; this condition caused aversion to light and preference to darkness. Red didn't activate his night vision immediately. Instead, he moved forward in the dark and stopped at six steps. His lekku twitched as he heard a sound behind… No wait, now it's coming from the right. It's hard to tell. Red sighed.

"Pur, must we go through this every time I come in here?"

"_**Aww, you're no fun**_." Something fell right in front of him from the ceiling. Red didn't even flinch. Purple liked greeting him like this.

"I heard you ate not long ago."

"_**Indeed! This time they gave me a Vortian. Puaj! They taste horrible. I prefer lizard blood, theirs is much sweeter and colored like me! Think I could get one next time?**_"

"I'll see what I can do. Sobrekt are hard to capture alive; they always find a way to end themselves before reaching the Massive." Red could feel Purple's breath from behind him. "But I'll see what I can do."

The two engaged in a few activities for the day, such as playing electronic chess, listening to music, chatting or watch t.v. It was mostly a way to keep Purple entertained. Red had done everything within his power to make him feel as comfortable as possible despite the... situation. The room was dark, but it had a few commodities such as a bed, a tv screen, books and puppets; lots of puppets.

Overall, Red kept Purple updated on what happened outside those four walls. He brought recordings of new planets and enemy armadas being blown up in his honor. On one occasion he had brought him a live video of Vortians being blown up. For some reason, Purple always had it against the goat-like aliens. Red never understood why, but he never questioned it either. When there were no videos involved, he would act it out with puppets.

As they talked, Red's gaze would sometimes drift off towards a small ceiling compartment in the far corner of the room when Purple got distracted. He wondered how Purple hunted his 'meals' without making a mess out of everything. He probably didn't want any filthy alien blood on his previous puppets.

"_**I miss doughnuts, Red. Can't you bring me some? Or nachos, It's been a while since I had those**_!" Despite the raspiness and animalistic tone, Purple's voice had acquired, Red could still tell his what he was feeling. He was sad, almost begging. It made his squeedly-spooch squirm.

"Remember the last time I brought you snacks? You threw up all over the place, and it took a while to clean up." Red frowned at the darkness where he knew Purple was. "We have to thank you for that last part."

"_**The drones stared at me, Red! They were staring at me as if I were a freak of some sort! Come on! Sure, I might not look as handsome, but I'm not a monster! They needed to be reminded that I'm still their Tallest!**_" Now he was desperate as his voice gained a melancholy tone. "_**You don't think I'm a monster, do you, Red?**_"

"Of course, I don't, Pur."

"_**Then look at me! Think I haven't noticed that you haven't activated your night vision?! You're afraid of me, just like everyone else!**_"

"I'm not, Purple, come on! You're my best friend!-" He had to step back when Purple's eyes glowed in the darkness, a clear sign that he was pissed.

"_**T****HEN LOOK AT ME!**_" Red hesitated for a few seconds. It wasn't that he was afraid, he wasn't. It's just that looking at Purple, his best friend, and co-ruler, in this state hurt him. With a heavy sigh, he activated the night vision.

Purple was not wholly unrecognizable, but his appearance would surely be frightening to anyone who didn't know who he was. His skin had turned a pale shade of sickly green that was almost white. His teeth had become pointy, but two, in particular, were longer than the rest and currently tainted in blue blood. Dark bags surrounded his eyes, giving him an even ghastlier appearance. Any other would have fainted or reacted in terror upon such gruesome sight, but Red didn't even flinch.

"You look awful, Pur."

"_**Don't tell me. Are you sure you can't give me a donut?**_"

"I can't give you an actual donut, but I can give you something close to it." Red removed his left gauntlet and held out his arm. The forearm had teeth marks all over. "I had a packet of chocolate donuts yesterday, so hopefully it'll taste like it."

"_**Did they have sprinkles?**_"

"No sprinkles and with the whipped cream topping, just like you like them."

"_**Wouldn't it be easier if you brought your blood in a packet? I hate digging my fangs into your body!**_" Red chuckled.

"You know I'd rather have your fangs in my body than a needle."

"_**D****on't tell me you're still afraid of needles!**_"

"Says the guy who is afraid of chopsticks."

"_**I don't fear them; I find them frustrating; it's different!**_" Red rolled his eyes.

"Just… get it over with."

It was quick. Purple always tried his best not to hurt him, but Red couldn't help but wince as he felt the fangs piercing through his skin and his blood being sucked out. It made him feel like that tiny straw Purple had been so bent on getting back only to discard it a few hours later. The feeding session only lasted five minutes; even with the PAK, his organic body needs blood to survive.

"_**Irk, it's the sweetest thing I've ever tasted!**_" Purple said after he was done, licking his lips. "_**Did you know your blood tastes differently after eating?**_"

"Don't tell me," Red said, pressing a cloth against the new punctures in his forearm.

"_**You know something, Red? If I didn't have to feed on plasma to survive, I'd like to stay like this. I mean, other than that little detail, the speed, strength, and agility are neat!**_" Red stared at his friend sadly. He knew better than that. As lazy as Purple might be, he knew his co-Tallest didn't want to stay in a dark room, almost completely isolated, forever. Rich plasma wasn't the same as having actual donuts or snacks. Besides

"We're still working on a cure, Pur. Don't worry; everything will be alright." Now it was Purple's turn to sigh sadly.

"_**You've told me that so many times that I've lost count. Perhaps it's time you accept the facts, Red**_."

"Purple, I'm not leaving you like this! Surely there's a way to revert this; we have to find it!"

"_**Oh, Red**_…" Purple shook his head sadly. "_**You were always the smartest one**_." Those were the last words he said before retreating into the darkness.

Red stared at the spot Purple had been standing on sadly. It wasn't until the alarm announcing Purple's next feeding hour wailed that he finally made his way out.

As Red went to bed that night, he made a solemn vow. He would find a way to cure his best friend or die trying.

* * *

**What did you think? **

**I believe that Irkens would treat vampirism as a disease rather than a supernatural condition or an 'undead' state. They don't eve superstitions, so it's normal they wouldn't believe in the supernatural at all, since they're an advanced alien race. My head canon is that the signs of vampirism in Irkens is mostly similar to humans, except Irkens are more in-between beast-like behavior and their more-rational selves. This is thanks to their _PAK_s acting as secondary brains and the filters cancelling all the excessive aggression.**

**Even in this state, I think Purple would not hurt Red. As I said, he's still rational enough, and even if he weren't, he still remembers Red as something 'he's very fond of'.**

**As to how he got this 'disease', I'll leave it up to you to interpret it.**


End file.
